The Founder of Socialogy

August Comte 1798 - 1857

By Sania Malik
A Science of Society

 Comte’s goal was to

 Explain the past
 Predict the future
Social Physics

He first named the new science “social physics.” He later changed this to
“sociology.” The word comes from the Greek “soci” which means “society”
and the Latin “ology” which means “study of.”
Sociology

Like all science, Comte believed that this new science of society should be based
on reasoning and observation.
Sociology

Science attempted to explain all phenomena through theories based on natural

laws. Sociology, Comte believed, should have the same goal: to discover the
natural laws that determine social stability and change. Further, like the
natural sciences, sociology should be used to create a better society.
Theory

For Comte, the simple collection of facts was not enough. “Facts cannot be
observed without the guidance of some theory.”
Comte On Theory

 "No social fact can have any scientific meaning till it

is connected with some other social facts" (II, p.
245).
 "If it is true that every theory must be based upon
observed facts, it is equally true that facts cannot
be observed without the guidance of some theory" 
(Comte, 1830, p. 4).
 "No real observation of any phenomena is possible,
except in so far as it is first directed, and finally
interpreted, by some theory" (Comte, 1830, p. 243). 
Positivism

"The first characteristic of Positive Philosophy is that it regards all phenomena as

subject to invariable natural Laws. . . . Our real business is to analyze
accurately the circumstances of phenomena, and to connect them by the
natural relations of succession and resemblance" (Comte, 1830, 5-6).
Positivism

In order to transform the natural world to our purposes, human beings first had
to discover natural law through science. Once sociology discovers the laws
governing social evolution, we can use this knowledge to make a better
world. In order to change society for the better, we must first know how the
various parts of society fit together and how they change.
Positivism

Societies impose limits on human behavior. A science of society will help discover
what these limits are so that we will know what is possible and what is not.
Personal opinion without the discipline of study and science are as invalid in
understanding society as they are in understanding the natural world.
 Positivism
“Ordinary men should hold no opinions about matters of scientific fact.
The intellectual reorganization in the social sciences requires the
renunciation by the greater number of their right of individual inquiry
on subjects above their qualifications.”
Preferred Methods of Inquiry
The methodology of sociology is the
same as it is for the natural
sciences:
 Observation
 Experimentation
 Comparison
Observation

By observation Comte means the direct

observation of human behavior, guided
by a preliminary theory of what you
expect to observe.
Experimentation

Formal experimentation is not really

applicable in the study of many social
phenomena. For example, we cannot
study the effects of mother love by
taking infants away from their mothers
and comparing this to infants that were
coddled.
Historical Comparison

But, the chief method for the social scientist "consists in a comparison of the
different co-existing states of human society on the various parts of the
earth's surface--these states being completely independent of each other.  By
this method, the different stages of evolution may all be observed at once"
(II, p. 249). 
 Historical Comparison
“The historical comparison of the consecutive states of humanity is not
only the chief scientific device ...it constitutes the substratum of the
science...Sociology is nothing if not informed by a sense of historical
evolution” (II, p. 251). 
Historical Comparison

Comte reasoned that different parts of the world were at different stages of
development. A comparison of these different social systems would therefore
enable us to better understand social order and social change.
The Law of Three Stages

The evolution of society has paralleled the evolution of the individual mind.
Phylogeny, or the evolutionary and historical development of human societies
parallels ontogeny, the course of development of the individual human
organism.
The Law of Three Stages

Individuals, he maintained, passed through three stages. We are devout believers

in childhood, in adolescence we become metaphysicians, enamored of such
concepts as fate, essence, first causes, and other abstractions. Finally, as
adults we become positivists, relying on observation and reason for
explanation.
The Law of Three Stages

 Mankind, too, has evolved through these three stages. “Each of our leading
conceptions—each branch of our knowledge, passes through three theoretical
conditions.”
 Theological Stage
 Metaphysical Stage
 Scientific (or positive) Stage
Theological Stage

 Universe explained in terms of:

 Gods
 Demons
 Mythological Beings
Theological Stage

“In the theological state, the human mind, seeking the essential nature of
beings, the first and final causes (the origin and purpose) of all effects…
supposes all phenomena to be produced by the immediate action of
supernatural beings.”
Metaphysical Stage

 Reality explained in terms of abstractions:

 Essence
 Existence
 Substance
 Accident
Positive Stage

According to Comte, the metaphysical stage was just ending, giving way to the
final, or positive stage, in which explanations are based on scientific laws
discovered through…
 Experimentation
 Observation
 Logic
Societal Stages

 Societies go through these stages as well:

 Theological
 Metaphysical
 Positive
Theological Stage

The Ancient World. Dominated by military men, the basic societal unit is the
family.
Metaphysical Stage

The Middle Ages. Under the sway of churchmen and lawyers. The state rises to
social prominence.
Positive Stage

Modern Age. This will be governed by industrial administrators and scientific

moral guides. The whole human race becomes the main social unit.
Scientific Stages

Scientific knowledge also passes through stages similar to societies. Each stage
building on the knowledgebase of its predecessor. Different sciences evolve at
different rates. First there was astronomy, then physics, chemistry, biology,
and finally sociology.
Scientific Stages

Sociology is especially dependent upon the emergence of biology. Biology is

based on the study of organic wholes; biology is a holistic science concerned
with physiological and environmental systems.
Social Bonds

 Language
 Religion
 Division of Labor
Social Bond: Language

Language ties us to past generations, ties us into a community of our fellows with
similar concepts, values, and outlooks. Without common language we cannot
attain solidarity and consensus, without common language no social order is
possible.
Social Bond: Religion

Religion also serves to legitimate a society’s institutions, giving them spiritual

support and approval, strengthening the status quo, making it seem right and
ordained by God.
 Social Bond: Division of Labor
In other words, over specialization (or what we will come to call the
“detailed division of labor”) leads to “extinguishing or restricting the
general spirit.”
THE IMPORTANCE OF THE WHOLE

“There can be no scientific study of society, either in its conditions or its

movements, if it is separated into portions, and its divisions are studied
apart.”
References

 Martineau, Harriet. (Translator) 1896.  The Positive Philosophy of Auguste

Comte, Volumes I, II, and III. London:  Bell. 
 Coser, Lewis. 1976. Masters of Sociological Thought